The Shepherdess
by rika195
Summary: This is a recreated fairy tale from a book that only had part of the story! I mixed it with another story, but together it is awesome! You should read it! R&R would be great.


**Hello. This is a fairy tale from a book called "The Green Fairy Book" which is now so scarce I don't know where to find it. The book was old, ripped, and had several pages ripped out of it. I enjoyed reading the tiny bit of this story, and decided to recreate it making up whatever I wanted. You can flame me for changing the story, but since I don't know what the original is, you'll have to stick with my own invented recreation. Its cute, and very fairy tale. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own this fairy tale, I just recreated it.**

The shepherdess

By Rika195

Once upon a time, there lived a king who had seven daughters. He loved them all very much, and gave them whatever their hearts desired. Yet the king had a terrible illness, and knew that the day he would die was not far off, so he decided to give the kingdom to the one who best proved their love to him.

"How much do you love me?" he asked to his eldest daughter. Guessing what her father had in mind, she lied to him.

"More than I love the beauty of my eyes!" she declared. For, she was known for her beautiful eyes that a fairy had enchanted to bewitch anyone she wished.

"Ah," said the king. "You are indeed a good daughter." And so he went through all of his daughters. The second loving him more than her hair, the third more than her jewels, the fourth more than music, the fifth more than the stars, the sixth more than her shoes. The king was at a loss at who truly loved him the most, but was delighted to hear from his youngest and most favorite daughter. She was the most beautiful of them all.

She came before him humbly, a loving smile upon her face, and kissed him on the cheek. "My daughter," the king asked, "how much do you love me?" he felt sure her answer would be the best.

"I look upon you father, as I look upon the salt in my food," the youngest said to him, for she loved to cook. The king was not at all pleased with her words, and being quick tempered, ordered that she quit the kingdom and never return. The princess, who loved her father dearly, wept before him, and asked that he at least give her three dresses. One a light purple and as flowing as a lilac, one as shiny and silvery as the stars, and the third as white and wintry as the snow on a full moon night. The king granted her request, but sent her from his presence. The princess wept, but gathered her new dresses, and three crowns. One was gold with amethyst, another silver with diamonds, another white gold with black pearls. She then gathered her new wardrobe; three sets of servant's clothing.

The princess left the castle weeping, and all the people of the court wept with her. Yet the king was not to be moved. So she made herself ugly, and went looking for work as a shepherdess or goosegirl. But the farms people would have nothing to do with such an ugly creature, and sent her away with a morsel of bread for charity's sake. She traveled the road for many days, until she was quite far from her own country. She one day came upon a small farm looking for a shepherdess. They engaged her gladly, and she grew both smart and quick in everything she did. Though everyone thought her ugly, they saw special talents in her, and trusted her to take the sheep to far away pastures for up to two days at the most. She enjoyed the company of the sheep, and they soon became her best friends. They followed her wherever she went.

She fell in love with one small lamb that had lost its mother during the fall. She named it Sister, to remind her of her sisters. For though they hated her, she loved them dearly, as much as she loved her father.

One day, during the winter, while out with the sheep, she had the desire to dress in one of her beautiful gowns. She washed herself carefully, and put on her lilac dress and amethyst crown. She had brought several rings with her, and put them all on. Then, singing, she lulled the sheep into a far away field where grass still poked out through the snow. And while they fed, she sang and danced.

One this same day, the son of the king of this land had gotten lost hunting. He had been wandering the wilderness for hours and happened to hear someone singing. The voice was so enchanting, that he went to search for the singer. As he neared a clearing the snow-covered pasture, he saw the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He fell in love with her at a faraway glance, and thought she must be a fairy. He ran after her, calling her, but with one note in her song, she called the sheep to her, and vanished away in the snow. The prince, bewildered, went in search for her. After many fruitless hours of searching, he decided to follow the tracks of the sheep. For though the sheep had come this way, there were no sign of any tracks leading back to the farm. They had simply vanished.

The princess, -who had been cleverly hiding in the snow- when she was quite sure the prince was gone, dressed back into her ugly disguise, and called the sheep to go home.

The prince found his way to the farm, but when asked for the name of the beautiful shepherdess, was laughed at because they said she was the ugliest creature under the sun. He then decided she must be a fairy, and so quickly left the place before she came home. Fairies often dressed as poor peasants to reward the good hearted and teach the wicked a lesson.

The next week, the princess wished again to dress beautifully, and brought the sheep far into the land and into a distant overgrown vineyard. She was quite safe from spies because it was a maze, and only she knew it by heart. It was so overgrown, she had no fear. And so, she dressed this time in her dress as shiny and silvery as the stars, with her silver crown. She again wore all her rings, and sang to the sheep about her father whom she loved much.

The prince, at this time, had happened by the vineyard this day, and heard her singing. He was so enchanted by it, he knew it must be the fairy. So he went in search of her, calling out to her. When he turned the corner and saw her, dressed more beautiful than the stars, he called out to her to stay where she was. She turned to look at him, and did the strangest thing he had ever seen. She laughed, a pure dazzling laugh, and seemed to vanish as she ran away. The prince ran in the direction she had gone, but could not find a trace of her. He left very perplexed, and very grieved. It was the second time he had seen her. As he was leaving, he found a ring, so small, and so bent, it seemed too small or crooked to fit anyone without the exact same hand. He picked it up and carried it with him.

The princess, now safely hidden in the overgrown vines, called the sheep to her and left. She quickly changed back into her ugly disguise, and left for home. She had fallen in love with the handsome prince, but could not let him see her.

A week had gone by, and the prince pined away, not eating much, and always roaming the castle. He often wished he could find the one who fit this ring he held with him always. His father wished he would do something instead of roam, and wondered what was wrong. The prince would not answer questions, so the king said he would do anything the prince desired only to make him happy again.

"Alright then." the prince replied. "I wish to go on a long journey. It may not be long, but when I come back, I wish to marry the girl I bring with me. If I do not bring a lady home with me, I shall marry the one who fits this ring." The prince held the ring up for the King to see.

The king agreed, but thought it odd. Soon the prince left to find the princess he thought to be a fairy. He traveled a long distance, and followed the tracks of sheep. It led him nowhere, and he soon was lost without any hope of finding his way out of the forest he was in.

The princess this day, wished to dress again. She asked to be gone for at least a week with the sheep, because they wished for lush grass. The farms people agreed, so she packed and left. She traveled deep into a forest she had spent so much time in, and knew well. There, there was grass that was not covered by snow. Soon dressed in her dress as white and flowing as snow, and her crown of black pearl, she sang the sheep to follow her throughout the forest to her hiding place.

The prince was desperate now, very lost, and very sad. He wandered endlessly, until he heard the sounds of a very far away voice singing. He knew at once it was the fairy, and spurred his horse to follow it. When he was quite close to the voice, and he heard the baying of sheep, he jumped off his horse and followed on foot. When he set eyes on the damsel dressed in her flowing dress, he was charmed and even more in love than he was before. He knew her to be the same, even though she was dressed differently, and he followed her quietly. Her song was of a different language, and seemed to be the fairy language itself. Yet when he listened closely, it was the same language as his own.

_On my way home, I will remember, _

_Only good days._

_On my way home, I can remember,_

_Only new days._

_And on my way home, I remember,_

_All the best days...,_

Her voice sang out gaily, yet a sad tone was in it. He snuck up behind her, being very quiet, and prepared to grab her arm. Then, he reached out and took it, and to his surprise it felt very real.

"Stay fairy, do not go! Come with me now!" he cried out. She started at his touch, but laughed at him. Her dazzling eyes held him captivated, and he could not keep his arm from dropping hers.

"Let me go, Let me go." She whispered, smiling. He dropped her arm, but was dismayed when she began to run away, her seventy sheep following. The prince remembered that in order to truly make a fairy his, he must capture and kiss her. With the haste of one who was losing his most prized possession, he ran after her, swiftly caught her up in his arms, and kissed her. Shocked, the lady in his arms did not move.

"Now you are mine!" he declared, and carried her back to his horse. She waited until they were both mounted on the horse before calling her sheep to follow her with a soft note in her unfinished song.

With a fairy in his arms, and seventy sheep following, the prince made his way back to his castle. The king was overjoyed at the great beauty his son had discovered, and declared that they should be married. The princess here objected. To the dismay of the prince, she sadly told them she could not marry him, but must return with her sheep. The prince kept her arm, so that she might not vanish like before, he thought. He got down on his knees and begged her. He said he would die if she did not marry him.

The princess wept, because her father had not given her his consent, and said she could not. But feeling selfish, she said she would write her father for permission. The prince heartily agreed, and the message was sent. The prince now decided that his beautiful princess was not a fairy, but a princess. Still, he was not sure.

The king, who had never forgiven himself for sending away his most beloved daughter, was overjoyed to hear that the prince wanted to marry her. He left the kingdom to be watched by his vizier, and took his daughters with him. When he came, the prince was still by the princess's side, not letting her out of his sight lest she should vanish.

A feast was thrown when permission was given, but the princess ordered that all foods given to her father should be cooked without salt or seasoning at all. He ate so little, she asked him if he did not like the food.

"It is all well done," he said, "but it is all so tasteless!"

"Did I not tell you that I looked upon you as the salt in my food?" the princess said. "But when I compared you to it, you sent me away."

"I will never misinterpret your words again." the king said, hugging her. Her sisters looked on this, and were very jealous of her. They too loved the prince, and decided to steal him from their younger sister. They sat with him an hour, and the eldest soon enchanted him with her eyes. The youngest princess knew what they were up to, and hit them soundly until they left. Then, kissing the prince, she broke the spell. She didn't tell her prince about it though, for she was afraid of what he might do to them.

The sisters decided to get rid of their sister, for they were jealous of her. In the night, they poisoned her drink. They left quietly, and pretended they knew nothing of it.

When the prince woke and found her dead, all of the castle mourned for her. Some said she was a fairy, but because she had fallen in love, had died. The prince, not waiting another second got atop his horse and left. He didn't know exactly where he was going, but he gave orders that the princess was not to be touched or moved till he got back.

The prince had heard of a magical fairy living in a castle with a king who had captured her. If one could make her cry, she would grant any wish. The prince sped off in search of this castle, and was lost for three days.

Finally, he happened upon it, and rushed to the gate for an audience. He noticed a little white thing behind him, and found it to be Sister, the princess's favorite lamb. The lamb had followed him the whole way. The prince quietly picked up the exhausted lamb, and went inside the castle.

When he stood before the fairy, he poured out his story, and how he found her dead. The fairy looked not at him, but at the lamb. Quietly, she picked it up.

"I will tell you the real story." she said. "This lamb represents the love your princess has for her sisters. But it was her sisters that poisoned her drink last night. Your princess is not dead, but asleep under a spell."

"Can you cure her, please?" the prince wept before her. And because the prince wept so purely, and the little lamb wept with him, the fairy wept also.

"I cannot stand this grief!" she wept. "I will take this lamb, and I will cure your princess."

"No, I cannot do that." the prince stood suddenly. "That lamb means much to my princess."

They argued for some time, until the prince, weeping again, let her keep the lamb when she threatened not to cure her. Then, without the lamb, the prince left for home.

When he rushed into the princess's room, she was wide awake and happy to see him.

"I sent Sister with you." she said. "Did you see?"

"Yes, I saw." The prince smiled sadly He told her his story, and the princess nodded.

"I know. I sang her not to be afraid. I know what my sisters did to me. I am very sad, and I love them even more. With sister gone, I feel more real love and sorrow for them, because the love that I thought they loved me with is gone also. It is alright I am happy again."

"Come," said the prince. "You have been under a spell for three days. Eat, and regain your strength."

And so, they were married that night. Though her family was not there to see it, most of them rejoiced. The sheep were given to her as a wedding gift, and were always held in the highest honor. Soon another little lamb was born, just like Sister, whom she called Love. They lived happily for the rest of their lives. The end.


End file.
